This project grew out of the Tom DeLay scandal. It has quickly become clear that not only is the Republican party unwilling to hold Tom DeLay accountable for his corruption, but many other Republicans are also terribly corrupt. Given the facade the Republicans have of being the "moral party," this kind of widespread corruption kind of tarnishes their image. This blog will highlight specific Corrupt Republicans and specific actions we can all take to expose their corruption.

Saturday, April 05, 2008

Republican War Profiteers

Blackwater is a mercenary organization with close ties to Republican politicians. They are one of the many incompetent war profiteers that the Bush/McCain Republicans love so much. Right now they are best known for a scandal where their poorly disciplined and improperly led mercenaries opened fire on Iraqi civilians. Blackwater's slaughter of these civilians has been declared unjustified and has led to an FBI investigation. This scandal led to resignation of US state department official Richard Griffin and a call for more oversight of these "private contractors" (a code word for Republican war profiteers).

So, when a company performs this badly, what does the Bush Administration do?Renew their contract, of course! Despite being involved in a scandal that led to the downfall of a State Department official and a considerable blow to our attempts to win the hearts and minds of Iraqis, Blackwater is rewarded with a renewal to the contract. This is the very definition of mismanagement and it has become the signiture of Republican policy: reward the incompetent.

I have interacted with many mercenary groups, including Blackwater. There is no place in the American force structure, or in American culture for mercenaries. They are guns for hire; No more, no less. The primary motivation is money. In most cases it does not matter who's money. Private Security Organizations as extensive as Blackwater, for example, should not be allowed to operate in war zones as augments of the United States of America. Private Armies represent the very things we depise as a people. Servants to the highest bidder with true allegiance to no-one.